The role of the Dasamsa in the Rise and Fall in one’s Career and Status

Every student of Jyotish knows well that apart from the natal chart or rasi chakra, there are other divisional charts or vargas used for better clarity as well as for a more in-depth analysis. While some of the vargas like Drekkana (D-3), Navamsa (D-9), Dwadasamsa (D-12) and Shastiamsa (D-60) are to be used for both the overall results as well as specific results, there are other charts that are used for specific purposes. Dasamsa is one among such important vargas. It is well known that Dasamsa or D-10 is used to shed more light on profession or career. But is that all? What is the actual scope of this division? Let us see what Parasara (BPHS) says about the Dasamsa. According to Parasara (BPHS 7), the D-10 or Dasamsa is used for judging ‘Mahatphalam’.

The word ‘mahatphalam’, can loosely be translated as ‘Great results’ or ‘Great fruits’. Now that does not directly or necessarily mean just career or profession. The dasamsa is used (along with the rasi or natal chart) to predict about matters related to career, status, achievements, one’s role in the society, etc. This is also what the 10th house or mid-heaven signifies. Since the dasamsa shares the same symbolism as the 10th house largely, let’s briefly look into what the 10th house signifies.

The symbolism of the Tenth House/ Meridian axis and the Dasamsa

One could write many pages listing the various direct and derived significations of any house, planet or sign. But it helps the beginner to first identify the key word or key symbolism of a house, from which many other significations arise or are derived. The most important of the houses are the angles, which are the corner stones, rather the pillars of the chart. They support the chart and are hence refered to as Vishnu sthanas (Vishnu sustains or maintains the universe). The 10th house (which roughly corresponds with the mid-heaven) is the point of maximum externalization of the self. It represents one’s social role and position, and life direction too. Traditionally these are linked to one’s career as well. Quite often it is true; true to the extent that one defines oneself by what one does. A very important key word for the tenth house is ‘sva-dharma’.

While the 9th house signifies dharma, the tenth signifies svadharma. While dharma is universal to a certain extent, svadharma is very much individual and varies from individual to individual. Now what is svadharma? Simply put svadharma is “what an individual needs to with his/her life in order to evolve”. But spiritual evolution, rather the ascent back to the original state, the cosmic roots, is also linked to liquidation of karma. Thus the tenth house affords us a chance to liquidate karma through one’s career or whatever one most naturally is suited to do. The 4/10th is very enigmatic and probably one of the least understood in a way. A word about the Meridian axis or the 4/10 axis.

The fourth house is a house of inward and personal life as opposed to outward and social concerns (seen in the opposite tenth house). Matters that support one’s existence both on physical and emotional levels come under this house. The fourth house symbolizes at a broader level all that is supportive of your physical existence, thus signifying the home, mother (or anybody who fulfils the mother like nurturing and supportive role) , one’s forbears, native land, past and tradition. Among all the above, the home is the most personal and intimate life. It is the support under one’s feet. Your home is the piece of earth where you settle down and put out roots. It is the place of intimate personal life to which you retire after a day of confronting the outer social world. The idea of belonging is the main point of this house. Real estate, land and agriculture also belong to this house. Hence a loaded 4th house could symbolize a sense of insecurity that can perhaps drive you to get more land, property and houses to fill the inner conflict. It governs the feelings of belonging, being at home, and being connected. It symbolizes psychological structures that are genetically inbuilt or formed in earliest life. More number of planets in the fourth house, indicate a strong personal, subjective manner of dealing with the world, making you an introvert. You need to feel secure, making the need for a sense of belonging very important. At a root level, this house speaks of your basic securities (or insecurities). One’s desire to achieve stability and to put down roots is seen here. Consequently, 4th house events are related to one’s search for situations and people who can offer material and moral security. A negative manifestation could indicate lack of the much-needed support or conflict at home. But this could often drive one to the opposite house as a compensation. Remember that planets in the 4th house influence the 10th house affairs by their full aspect on the 10th. All planets aspect the 7th sign from the sign they occupy, thus affirming the fundamental principle of polarity. Opposite houses counterbalance each other.

The tenth house symbolizes your role in the outside world, a state that you aspire to, your svadharma- your very own purpose in life. Tenth house matters not only draw you away from the concerns of your family and home, but can also be very fulfilling. Anything and anybody capable of influencing your social status also comes under this house. The tenth house includes among others, career, profession, honor from people of authority, work of or in the government, service, commerce, self-respect, fame, influence and status. More planets here signify a need to achieve and be recognized as a person of importance. While the 1/7 axis tells us about how one (1st ) interacts with others, how one reaches out to the others (7th), the 4/10 tells about one’s sense of identity, about the way one expresses oneself, the objective towards which one is working, and the experiences from which one is coming. While the 4th house indicates your sense of identity, who you are, the tenth indicates what you should aspire for, what you need to do in order to grow. Thus in a way the 10th holds the key to the enigma of the 4th. The 4th represents the unconscious workings of your mind, and how you externalize them in the Tenth. As the karmasthana, the tenth house can represent the ultimate blossoming of karma. Career affords one a chance to liquidate karma by living out one’s personal dharma (svadharma). That is why the highest manifestation of Ketu in the 10th is self-realisation (remember Ketu in 10th in ideal conditions can give self-realisation as in the case of Sri Ramakrishna).

Having covered the significance of the angles, especially the 4th and the 10th, let me move to the dasamsa, by reminding you that much of the symbolism of the tenth gets repeated in the Dasamsa.

Since the topic of dasamsa is too vast to be covered in one article, I will restrict myself to just the career part. But bear in mind that the roots of one’s svadharma, the point of maximum externalization of the self, and its relation to one’s career, are all seen here. Thus while ‘great results or fruits’ or ‘mahatphalam’ are to be seen here, I will restrict myself to a very common job that every astrologer is asked to do by most clients- chart the rise and fall in one’s career.

Mapping the rise and fall in one’s career through the use of the Dasamsa

Factors influencing career

How do we analyze one’s profession and career life? What are the factors that we should look at?

In this article the emphasis is on the dasamsa. But no divisional chart works in isolation from the rasi chart. Since the rules in the rasi (natal) chart are mostly applicable in a divisional chart with some modifications, first let me take you through the natal chart.

Planets in the Tenth

A planet in the tenth speaks about one’s career. If there is more than one planet, how does one go about? Look at the following guidelines.

• Who is the stronger planet
• How do the planets influence each other mutually? Are there any yogas formed by the conjunction of these planets? What is the combined influence of the planets in the tenth generally as well as with reference to the career or tenth house effects?
• Each of the planet in the tenth gives its effects in its periods and sub-periods more strongly, while the influence of the other planet(s)

10th lord and its placement

Understanding the interplay of the tenth house energies with other houses is vital in judging one’s career. I will therefore take you through a brief journey through the same. What is being discussed below is the essence of various texts, which I have tried to modernize slightly. Read through and ponder over the same.

~TENTH LORD IN FIRST HOUSE:

Just and peace loving, your comeuppance in life results directly from your exertions and determined perseverance. Your disposition is well for self employment. If not, you will be in high ranks with the government or something akin to that. You possess an intelligence about business transactions, which works cooperatively with your artistic spirit. A poet, pioneer and determined worker, you gain success, prosperity and status. You gain a reputation as one of knowing authority. Social projects, the building of institutions and charitable deeds all lie on your path. Though you may have experienced childhood ailments, you recover from them fully. If the 10th lord is either conjunct or aspected by the lagna lord in the first house it gives great fame as an inventor or innovator.

~TENTH LORD IN SECOND HOUSE:

The food service industry, specifically restaurants and catering, offer successful business prospects. You possess an ability to generate significant earnings constantly increasing your fiscal well being. And you are driven by the urge to consistently improve your money. Under your beck and call, workers and assistants flock near you. It is indicated that your power and authority become unlimited. Those of power note your efforts. Cordial relations exist in your life and especially the relationship with your father. You may absorb the family business, which contains its own trials and tribulations. Some losses might exist in stabilizing this business. Various troubles with such losses face you on occasion, especially if afflicted.

~TENTH LORD IN THIRD HOUSE:

The capacity to work hard and undertake even strenuous work are your assets. Speaking and writing top the lists of your professional pursuits. Acclaim comes to you as a bold writer. Successes occur swiftly; the climb up the career ladder happens easily. Agency work, newspapers, publishing houses, writing and contracts all provide you with significant gain. You possess musical inclination and talent, possibly becoming famous in this field. Many short journeys fill your travel dockets. Others see you as courageous and truthful. Your siblings and servants surround you with harmonious relations. Should the planet/house be afflicted, successes would be slow and the path ridden with obstacles. Restlessness and aimless wandering would follow, haunting you and your desire for happiness. Rivalry with a brother could lead to career setbacks.

~TENTH LORD IN FOURTH HOUSE:

Land provides you with the location and wherewithal to work within agriculture and to set up industries or business establishments. These ventures proceed successfully bringing you renown in your native land (The 10th lord in the 4th aspects his own house of the tenth, thus leading to double impact). You gain several vehicles in your acquisitions as well. Authority comes to you politically (especially if the 9th lord also joins the 10th lord in the 4th thus leading to a raja yoga of a high order). You wield positions of great responsibility such as the head of an organization or governmental position. Respect and fame for your significant learning and demonstrated generosity follow you wherever you go. The bond you have with your mother is one of great attachment and concern for her welfare (remember that the 10th lord is the 7th lord from the 4th making him a maraka for the mother). Under aspects of duress you may enter into a life of servitude. You could be inclined toward poor decisions regarding properties. This would cause economic suffering and impact your reputation.

~TENTH LORD IN FIFTH HOUSE:

While pleased with simplicity and piousness, rank, election or ruler ship, elevate you to positions of fame and notoriety. You could possess the rank of ruler or minister in your ascension, or be elected to office (10th lord in the 5th leads to a raja yoga). The arts appeal to you. You earn through music, drama or cinema. Indications support you becoming a famous artist in your own right. Heading an orphanage or a house of remand also remains a likelihood. Wealth becomes yours to claim. You are blessed with children, more than likely sons. Highly learned, you maintain a cheerful disposition. Disagreements with your boss or higher ups could cause you concern (5th house being the 8th from the 10th)

~TENTH LORD IN SIXTH HOUSE:

Service oriented and work minded you love your job. Naturally, this opens the way to your success typically through quick promotions. Your work relates to hospitals, prisons and the judiciary. In a judicial career, you rise to a high court, Supreme Court or receive a position of importance in this governmental branch. You possess the ability to be a skilled surgeon or physician. Respect and honor goes with your work. Under stressful aspects your enemies cause you ongoing contention. Disgrace comes to your career, commonly because of exposure to criminal activity or litigations. Incarceration would be possible, especially if afflicted. Despite your skills, money does not materialize in the way you expect. Your parents would be of little or no help.

~TENTH LORD IN SEVENTH HOUSE:

Strong in business skills, social and financial success naturally come your way. Perseverance and highly honed oratorical skills add to your success profile. Work in conveyances, railways and automobile companies provide you with professional profit. Your patterns indicate an aptitude for becoming a pilot. Partnerships and cooperative ventures augment your economic accomplishments. Travel abroad wins you distinction and recognition. Diplomatic missions could occur within your travels. You are religiously inclined and truthful. The opposite sex is comfortable for you to be around. You attract a mature mate who assists in your work (10th lord in the 7th indicates a career oriented spouse). Conjugal bliss goes with you and your spouse. If the 9th lord also joins the 10th lord in the 7th the father may be rich and successful, because the 7th house is the 10th from the 10th (10th lord could signify the wealth/riches of the father, being 2nd from the 9th).

~TENTH LORD IN EIGHTH HOUSE:

Your career path provides you with a source of constant challenge. Caution and attention can preclude some difficulties. However, it appears you will rise up to positions of authority, be suspended, and then later reinstated. You may change careers and even pursue a hobby seriously that it may become a source of income one day (8th being the 11th from the 10th). The workplace consists of talebearers seeking to do you harm. Behind the scenes meetings and back biting conversations become commonplace. You may be forced to resign from some professional positions. Some of your stressful professional situations muddy your mind. The decisions you make work against you and debilitate your career. Humiliation can be somewhat avoided by shunning all criminal or dubious activities, especially under malefic aspects. Income from agricultural means is likely frittered into nothing. You choose lowly positions like undertaker, graveyard work or burning ghats. Alternately your career could be connected to leather products, insurance, mining etc. If the 10th lord is a benefic or under benefic influences, you may attain high ranks for short periods in your career path. But the 8th house brings breaks in career, ups and downs and dramatic changes at times as other dusthanas too do. Accepting responsibility and avoiding placing blame on others for your life conditions would be helpful to yourself. You possess the ability to become a spiritual teacher or mystic within your indicated long life span, especially with Jupiter’s aspect or influence.

~TENTH LORD IN NINTH HOUSE:

A spiritual stalwart and a beacon of light for spiritual seekers, your religious inclinations, spiritual understanding and embarkation upon a “spiritual sadhana” (exercise to attain perfection) light your way. A generous, pleasant nature blended with your strong philosophical leanings makes your work as spiritual guide easier still (especially under Jupiter’s influence). You could work as a government officer, auditor, banker, medical professional. Industrial concerns and labor appeal to your interests and lie within your attributes. Private consulting services fall within your nature. Hereditary professions such as preacher, teacher or healer in which your father holds great influence for you. A dutiful child, you derive pleasures from your own offspring. Astrological afflictions, if applicable, would bring a lowly professional status and lack of success.

~TENTH LORD IN TENTH HOUSE:

Distinction, respect and honor come your way after a hard, but swift climb upward. You possess steadfastness in your views and opinions firmly believing yourself to be always correct. Despite this arrogance, you remain capable of showing respect to your elders. Business success occurs based upon your use of skill and courage. Your influence extends widely. The workers you have under you respect you, and your word is held as law. You set up institutions relating to your field. If afflicted, you lack self-respect, often cringing for favors and tend to be of a vacillating nature (vacillating mind is due to the afflicted planets in the 10th influencing the 4th by full aspect). If too many planets aspect or occupy the 10th you might opt for the life of an ascetic renouncing worldly affairs.

~TENTH LORD IN ELEVENTH HOUSE:

Fortune in all respects is indicated. You provide employment to hundreds of persons, receiving honor, success and respect for this and other meritorious deeds. Business enterprises include: trade in sea products, milk and restaurants woolen factories, match industries, gold market or chemicals. Becoming a newspaper magnate or prosperous publisher also fits your disposition. Cheerful, truthful, intellectual and a thinking individual, your relations tend to be cordial with others. Care in choosing close friends and associates benefits you. If afflicted some friends may be hidden enemies and not hold your best interests at heart. Their efforts could bring you hardship and worry. Even under the most difficult aspects you can achieve moderate success and wealth.

~TENTH LORD IN TWELFTH HOUSE:

Foreign lands or secluded places figure into your money making efforts. Your prosperity comes from distant sources. Job changes dot your professional path (10th lord in any dusthana does this). Despite your skills, some professional adversity must be overcome. A fearless approach works best. You pass through the royal abodes of rulers. Finally, you include zealous spiritual seeking on your course in life. Your tendency is to spend more, jeopardizing your economic profile and social status. Within your indicated job changes you likely lose your job as the cause. These changes in fortune can at times make you aimless, alienating you from family and loved ones. Temptations in unscrupulous business affairs taint your reputation. While the 10th lord in the 12th indicates changes and ups and downs in one’s career path, it does not necessarily signify an unsuccessful or bad career life. On a positive note, it could indicate links with foreign countries with respect to career, or even a career related to hospitals, prisons, investigative or research organizations etc. But if the tenth lord is with the 12th lord, it may even ruin one’s career in extreme cases.

Behind the above given readings, there are certain principles at work. Some are direct while others are indirect like the derived house interpretations, some of which I have drawn your attention to in the reading itself. So I will not go into all of the principles as that will take much space and time. Instead I will restrict myself to the most central one and summarize the above in the subsequent paragraphs. Keep in mind that the following is a simplified summary and that in reality every planetary position has both positive and negative implications if only one knows where to look for or how to interpret. At the level of duality, there are two sides to every coin and similarly every good placement can signify something bad (at least by virtue of every house being the 12th to the succeeding house and thus negating the succeeding house signification in some manner) while the seemingly most malefic placements too can give some positive outcome in some area.

• Tenth lord in 1,4,7,10: Good generally (Angles are Vishnu sthanas and supportive)
• Tenth Lord in 1,5,9: Good (Trines are lakshmi sthanas and lead to prosperity)
• Tenth lord in 2 or 11: Wealth giving (2H: finance/wealth & 11H: fulfillment/gains), though other problems may be there
• Tenth lord in 3H: Hard working and undaunted, both qualities being good for career (3H is the house of efforts and valor)
• Tenth lord in 6,8,12 (trik): Ups and downs, obstacles, changes (not necessarily always bad though rise and fall are dramatic at times); of these the 6th is probably better since it is an Upachaya house (house of improvement/growth)

With the above principles in mind let us move on to the Dasamsa where I will expand the same principles. But before that consider this. Is the 9th house good for career? Being the house of luck and fortune, one may expect it to be good. Though it is generally good, with respect to career it may not prove to be so quite often. Why? The 9th being the 12th from the 10th negates the 10th. Dharma (9th) negates Svadharma (10th). While svadharma is most important and to be followed at all costs, relatively speaking, when it is a conflict between absolute dharma and one’s own relative dharma, the higher dharma gets more preference. Anyway my actual point here is that the 9th being the 12th from the 10th negates it. So the 9th may not be very conducive to career matters depending on some factors.

Consider this. The 9th represents higher education. Logically speaking (and very often realistically too), if you undertake postgraduate studies you may either not be able to work at all during that period of time, or you may be able to work only part time. Either ways, your work potential generally goes down due to time and other constraints. But the same 9th is good for gains from father, hereditary vocations (again linked to father), or gains from higher knowledge or spiritual knowledge.

Strength of a chart generally with respect to Career:

The following factors indicate a good career, public life, recognition of one’s work etc:

What do we mean by well placed?
1. In Kendra, Trikona, 2, or 11 and
2. No malefic conjunctions or aspects

Now what do we mean by malefic? Or benefic for that matter? We will come back to this point later.

Is Mars a malefic in this context, with respect to career? Definitely not. Remember that the so called malefics can give strength, resilience, perseverance and the capacity to work hard, like an asura. In fact on the overall it is the malefics that give more scope for free-will, while the benefics tell more about your previous merits (poorva punya). Remember malefics in 3,6,10,11? They are most well placed in the Upachaya houses.

Resuming the topic where we left it, the factors that indicate a good career life on the overall are:

A word on the relationship between the rasi and amsa charts becomes necessary here. Rasi should be given more importance than amsa generally in any context. Normally what is not promised by the rasi chart cannot be given by an amsa chart. The amsa chart has to support the rasi chart for full fructification or the full potential of the rasi chart to be realized. And while the rasi indicates ‘heaps’ of things, the amsa indicates specific aspects of life only.

Note: All connections by aspect, conjunction and placement are to be considered.

Indicators of a good career or rise in career in the Dasamsa:

• Strong 10th House in D-10: Status, recognition and great achievements
• Planets in the 1st or 1st lord in D-10
• Planets in Kendras and Trikonas: Good

With the above principles in mind, let us see how one can see the rise and fall in career life through both the dasa and transits using the rasi and dasamsa charts. Remember that all results indicated by a planet in the rasi and amsa chart come to fructification in their dasa, antardasa and sensitizing transits. With this in mind, we will cover the basics now.

Planets in Kendras: Being Vishnu sthanas, planets in Kendras are auspicious. The angles as explained in the beginning itself are very important.

• Even malefics in Kendras are not bad for career. While this is obvious with the 10th house, it is indirectly obvious with the 7th (being 10th from 10th).

• Planets in the 4th are also very good for career, but indicate the unconscious workings of the mind (in the 4th) being externalized in the 10th by aspect. Malefics in the 4th indicate some sort of conflict or insecurity or lack of proper support at a domestic level or deeper level (maybe even related to some disturbance or disharmony at home with parents or with parents, especially mother), and this being either unconsciously compensated in the opposite house of the tenth (remember the principle of polarity) or being externalized or very rarely even resolved in the svadharma area. Quite often it may just be that the individual is using more energy in the 10th as an escape, in the attempt to draw away from the concerns of home or even as a compensation mechanism in dealing with the deep rooted insecurities. Remember that the tenth house symbolizes those energies that counterbalance the fourth and draw one away from its concern.

• Dasa lord or antardasa lord getting connected to the D-10 Lagna lord or D-10 tenth lord leads to a rise in career.

Planets in Trikonas: Being Lakshmi sthanas, they symbolize prosperity.

• Planets in trikonas in D-10 are good.
• Planets in or lords of 1,5,9 are good for career.

• Planets in 6, 8, 12 in D-10 indicate difficulties, tensions and worries with respect to career especially if they are unaspected by lagna lord or 10th lord.
• If aspected by the LL or 10L, initial difficulties followed by relief.
• When the Trika lords of D-10 are related to the 10th house or 10th lord, the dasa or antardasa may be tough. Here again relations are by placement as well as aspects.
• Malefics in Trika houses are better than benefics here (in the dasamsa only) .

In the above context, benefics are Strong Moon (Sukla paksa or bright half, especially fewdays before and after full moon), Jupiter, Venus and Mercury without malefic company or influence. The Sun, Saturn, Rahu, Ketu and weak Moon are considered malefic.

Can the same principles be applied to analyze the antardasa lord with respect to the dasa lord? Why not? So antardasa lord in 6,8,12 from Dasa lord in D-10 indicates difficulties and tensions. Modifications are as follows.

• If the antardasa lord is not in 6,8,12 from dasa lord in the rasi chart, and is well placed or
• If he is in the 4th or 10th in the rasi chart, then initial difficulties which are overcome and eventual success.

Planets in the Upachayas: Upachayas are houses of growth or improvement. Planets in these houses i.e. 3, 6, 10, 11 generally give good results eventually but with hard work and struggle.

• The benefics are good in the 10th and 11th, they are fine in the 3rd, and may not be good in the 6th.
• Malefics in the Upachayas are good generally.

Finally we will consider the transits now.

Transits and the Dasamsa:

Mark the following planets.

• Planets in the 10th and 10th lord in D-10
• Lagna lord and lagna in D-10
• 10th house and lord in rasi

These planets become the promittors for career matters.

Observe their transits. Keep the following in mind.

• Planets in the 10th in D-10 can trigger a rise in career or some favorable event with respect to career while transiting over the D-10 lagna or or lagna lord.
• D-10 tenth lord’s transit over the rasi 10th house or rasi 10th lord can also trigger some favorable event or rise in career, especially during the dasa or antardasa of such lords.
• Likewise observe the transits of all the promittors for career over the sensitive points (with respect to career)

Here too one should remember that dasas and transits should concur with each other, which they most often do.

When an astrologer analyses a chart from all the above mentioned angles, she/he will be able to categorize the various periods as follows.

A planet is benefic in the rasi and well placed in the dasamsa: Rise in career, achievements in public life, position, honor and great results (mahat phalam)

A planet is benefic in the rasi but badly placed in the dasamsa: Will give results, but after great struggle

A planet owns a malefic house (3, 6, 8, 12) in benefic places in dasamsa: Maleficience gets greatly reduced, but with respect to career matter only.

A planet is bad in both the rasi and dasamsa: Fall, disgrace, or suspension etc

In conclusion it may be said that the dasamsa is very crucial not only in deciding the rise and fall in one’s career, but also in finding one’s goals in life. The dasamsa, like the tenth house, sheds light on what the individual aspires to attain, but has not yet, something to become. In short it guides the individual in fulfilling his very own dharma- svadharma. But that should be the subject of another article/presentation.